'If the Thackeray cousins love the media, the media too adores the two bespectacled Thackeray scions, who in their bid to espouse their Marathi manoos agenda, have become an easy bait for a medium that depends for its survival on high TRPs and ad revenues.'
Before Maharashtra assembly commence its first session of Legislature, a political debate has started between the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena and its rival Samajwadi Party with the SP MLA Abu Asim Azmi demanding the House agenda in Hindi.
Of the 269 results declared so far, the ruling combine has bagged 131, the Shiv Sena-BJP alliance 87, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena 13, Republican Left Democratic Front 12 and others 26.
However, incumbent Chief Minster Ashok Chavan said the Congress-NCP alliance will be looking at the Republican Party of India for possible outside support if it fell short of the majority mark.
Did the Congress win based on performance or due to factors like Raj Thackeray?
In a veiled attack on estranged nephew and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray, Shiv Sena supremo Bal Thackeray on Tuesday said, "People of Maharashtra should show those trying to divide Marathi votes, their proper place."
Observing that nobody can "hold the people to ransom", the Bombay High Court on Thursday restrained Maharashtra Navnirman Sena president Raj Thackeray and his party members from indulging in violence or making provocative speeches over Marathi signboards issue.
The Bombay High Court on Thursday lashed out at the Maharashtra government over the threat given by Maharashtra Navnirman Sena about displaying the Marathi signboard on the shops and establishments in the metropolis.The division bench, consisting of Justices J N Patel and K K Tated, while hearing the petition, asked the state government to provide details of the preventive action the state has taken in response to the MNS deadline for Marathi signboards, which ended today.
On the eve of the Maharashtra assembly election, Loksatta Editor Kumar Ketkar, one of the most accomplished commentators on the state's politics, speaks to Prasanna D Zore.
Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray on Wednesday described Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray as the new Mohammad Ali Jinnah and said his estranged nephew was intent on dividing Marathi people.
In an attack on the Shiv Sena, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena leader Raj Thackeray has alleged that the party was more interested in 'Marathi votes' rather than the 'Marathi manoos'. Addressing an election rally in Pune on Tuesday night, Thackeray said the Shiv Sena had stopped fighting for the rights of Marathi man and it was the MNS which had taken up the cudgels to fight injustice, to which the 'Bhoomiputras' were subjected to.
Foreign actresses who appear in Bollywood films are being targeted in a hate campaign by the MNS in Mumbai.
A day after the Supreme Court asked him to desist from making provocative speeches targeting north Indians, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray chose to speak on Hindi saying the language should not be forced on the people.
Giving a new dimension to his son-of-the-soil campaign, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray said on Friday that land under irrigation in the state should be given only to Marathi people.
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray on Thursday surrendered before a court in Aurangabad in connection with four cases of rioting registered against him in 2008, but was later released on bail. Raj presented himself in the court of Judicial Magistrate, First Class, in Gangapur area in Aurangabad in central Maharashtra. The court released him on a bail of Rs 15,000 in all the four cases. He was accompanied by his lawyer Sayaji Nagare.
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray on Monday surrendered before a local court in Jalgaon in a case of rioting registered against him in 2008 and was later released on bail.
Samajwadi Party leader Abu Asim Azmi on Monday described Marathi as his mother and Hindi as his grandmother, and said he was learning the local language out of respect and not fear. "Marathi is like mother for me, but Hindi is like my grandmother. I am learning Marathi. (Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief) Raj Thackeray should not think that I am learning the language out of his fear," he said.
Sonia, who was addressing a convention of Congress functionaries and peoples' representatives in Maharashtra, said, "Here (in Maharashtra) regionalism is being encouraged. We have to fight the forces of regionalism, which are dividing society for their vested interests." The Congress president also asked party workers to work together and strengthen the party.
Flagging his stand on the sons-of-soil issue, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray said on Wednesday that if Pakistani terrorist Ajmal Amir Kasab could learn Marathi in a year then why can't Samajwadi Party leader Abu Azmi who has been living in Mumbai for years.
Favouring a stringent law to deal with attacks on north Indians in Maharashtra, senior Congress leader Digvijay Singh today said rowdyism by Maharashtra Navnirman Sena or Shiv Sena workers should not be tolerated at any cost.
Family members of Sarabjit Singh, an Indian national on death row in a Pakistani prison, on Saturday met Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray. Sarabjit's sister Dalbir Kaur, her husband Baldev Singh and Sarabjit's daughter Swapandeep Kaur met Raj at his residence in central Mumbai.Describing their plight to Raj, Dalbir alleged that the government was not making the required efforts to seek Sarabjit's release.
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray was one of the guests at the Prati-Kolhapur Festival, which was held at Shivaji Park in Mumbai on Monday.Thackeray, who donned a Kolhapuri headgear for the occasion, was his usual fiery self.
Thackeray's latest statement is expected to spark more controversy as the MNS chief will be on a statewide tour, starting February 13.
Rahul Raj, was killed in a shootout with the police at suburban Kurla after he fired indiscriminately and threatened passengers in the bus. Rahul reportedly claimed that he had come to the city to kill Maharashtra Navnirman Sena leader Raj Thackeray.
The Congress-Nationalist Congress Party government in Maharashtra has outdone the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena and Shiv Sena on the sons of the soil issue, directing that nameplates of commercial establishments in the state should be in Marathi.The state government issued a notification on May 31, directing that nameplates of all shops, establishments, commercial organisations, hotels, theatres and restaurants be in Marathi, an official release said.
Taking the Shiv Sena and the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena head-on, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh on Sunday said that it has asked its volunteers to protect north Indians in Maharashtra and prevent the spread of anti-Hindi feelings. "The Sangh Parivar has asked its volunteers in Maharashtra to try and prevent the spread of anti-north Indian and anti-Hindi feelings," said RSS leader Ram Madhav.He said the RSS was opposed to discrimination on the basis of language.
Fuelling the language row further in Maharashtra, Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena on Monday asked taxi drivers from the Hindi-speaking states of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh to be conversant in Marathi within 40 days or return to their native homes.
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena president Raj Thackeray, under flak for his strident anti-north Indian campaign, has decided to send letters to every household in the state, urging them to use Marathi in daily life. "Thackeray will pen the letter in Marathi and MNS workers will go to households in the state on February 27 to deliver the letter," a MNS leader said. "In the letter, the MNS chief will urge the people to use Marathi everywhere, including offices, trains and markets."
A Jamshedpur court on Tuesday issued a non-bailable arrest warrant against Maharashtra Navnirman Sena president Raj Thackeray.This is the third such warrant issued against him on the charges of hurting religious sentiments and abusing Biharis.Two other non-bailable arrest warrants issued by the court of Judicial Magistrate A K Tiwari are already pending against Thackeray.
Zenda, an upcoming Marathi movie based on the feud between Shiv Sena executive president Uddhav Thackeray and his estranged cousin Raj Thackeray has been termed as biased by Maharashtra Navnirman Sena activists for portraying their leader in "bad light".
Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar has conveyed his concern to Maharashtra chief minister Vilasrao Deshmukh over the security of Biharis and other Hindi-speaking people living there. Kumar also sought effective steps for the safety and security of these people, a spokesman for the chief minister's office said. Deshmukh assured the Bihar chief minister of providing security to the lives and property of the Hindi-speaking population in Maharashtra.
Public prosecutor Ajay Mishar's ride in Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray's car has triggered a controversy with lawyers saying such acts raise doubts whether the Maharashtra government is serious in prosecuting Thackeray in the 2008 riot case.
Complying with a Bombay High Court directive, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena President Raj Thackeray today surrendered before a court in Kalyan in Maharashtra in connection with a 2008 rioting case in which North Indians appearing for railway recruitment examination were assaulted.
Conspicuous by his silence when terror ripped the city apart, the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena leader finally went out and thanked the firemen who doused the fire at the iconic Taj Hotel on that fateful night.
The Aurangabad bench of the Bombay high court on Wednesday stayed the arrest warrant against Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray till January 4, 2010.The Badnapur JMFC court had issued the arrest warrant against Raj in connection to a stone pelting incident at a bus near Hirvi Phata in Badnapur of Jalna district on October 21 in 2008. Justice S S Shinde of the Aurangabad bench passed the order and advocate Sagar Ladda appeared for Raj.
Raj was dubbed as 'Dhanajirao' -- a euphemism for one who is wealthy or hankers after money -- by his uncle and Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray.
When the two met on Sunday, it was because "Saheb wanted some of his old books," still in Raj's possession, back and Raj offered to carry them to him instead of sending them over.
A delegation of Maharashtra Navnirman Sena leaders met Maharashtra Governor S C Jamir on Monday, requesting him to restore 'Z' category security of MNS chief Raj Thackeray.
The Supreme Court has issued a notice to the Maharashtra government on a petition seeking protection for life and property of all citizens in the wake of recent attacks against the north Indians.
A local court in Mumbai will decide on November 18 whether Maharashtra Navnirman Sena Chief Raj Thackeray has to be present in the court while arguments on the application seeking cancellation of his bail are heard.
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